Did you change channels when you saw that the early exit polls gave Mitt Romney a semi-comfortable win in Mississippi Tuesday night?

If so, you missed a little news. Here are ten things that didn’t happen on Southern Tuesday in Alabama and Mississippi:

1. Mitt Romney didn’t wrap up the nomination.

Indeed, he took a couple of steps back. Third place. Twice. Not exactly a ringing endorsement of the “inevitable” one. “It’s clear that conservatives across the country are sending a clear message to the Republican establishment: ‘nothing is over until we decide it is,’” said conservative strategist Keith Appell.

2. Rick Santorum didn’t pull out of the race.

Before the votes were counted, a cocky Romney told a TV interviewer that Santorum was at “the desperate end of his campaign.” Wrong, rich man! Santorum’s not gonna leave the race. He’s leaving for Louisiana instead. And Puerto Rico And Missouri. And Illinois. Mano a mano.

3. Newt Gingrich didn’t sweep the South, as he’d promised.

That old Southern firewall has been breached. Now Newt’s got plenty of nuttin’.

4. The exit polls didn’t get it right.

At least in Mississippi. Remember, dear readers, that there’s always a margin of error in exit polls. The networks never talk about that. Maybe we should have Governor Barbour pardon the pollsters. And Wolf Blitzer.

Some of the pundits were punditizing that Mitt ran first (or close to first) among evangelical Christians. But getting 32 percent of them means that he DIDN’T get 68 percent. In a three-way race, that’s good for a tie. If he ever goes one-on-one against Rick Santorum, that’s bad news. Really bad news.

We’re not sure those Alabama jail prisoners in stylish stripes were the way to go. We think those prisoners’ sentences might be over before Alabama officials finish counting the votes. Maybe the wrong folks are behind bars.

10. Ron Paul still didn’t win a state.

Boy, oh, boy, is he trying. He gave it the old college try in Hawaii. With lots of college students on spring break.